A 6.x earthquake hit Nevada this morning. I'm not clear what NV cities were nearby but there are reports of feeling it in NoCal, Idaho and UT.

I have no idea if earthquake standards (what keep us from massive casualties and astronomical damages) are in effect in NV so I wonder how they rode it out.

And, of course and primarily, I wonder how gingerpale is doing but I'm hoping she's well away from it and I'm being a tad hysterical. Still, I haven't seen a post from her yet..._________________God writes a lot of comedy... the trouble is, he's stuck with so many bad actors who don't know how to play funny. -- Garrison Keillor

And, of course and primarily, I wonder how gingerpale is doing but I'm hoping she's well away from it and I'm being a tad hysterical.

Just a tad, Rainey. I'm in Salt Lake City--some buildings downtown had "swaying" light fixtures, but Rich and I (and our sensitive doggie) felt nothing. We're about 250 miles away from the epicenter in Wells, Nevada. (That's about the same distance between you and Las Vegas.)
However, the local brothel in Wells ("DONNA'S Ranch" by name!) suffered some shaking.

However, the local brothel in Wells ("DONNA'S Ranch" by name!) suffered some shaking.

How, exactly, do you suppose they'd know?

Glad you didn't feel it. I know when I was first out here we'd have shakers I didn't notice. I'd be in a car and the tires would absorb the shock or I'd be sleeping and go on sleeping through them or walking and I couldn't distinguish the difference in the cadence of my own movements and those under my feet and I'd be sooo disappointed. Then we had one that twisted the 8x8 rafters of the house — no lie; you could see the torque in the way the wood split — and I didn't have to be disappointed any more.

Anyway, glad all your lovely new tiles are still intact along with your own toesies and scalp! _________________God writes a lot of comedy... the trouble is, he's stuck with so many bad actors who don't know how to play funny. -- Garrison Keillor

So, I forgot to ask, is that area pretty sparcely populated? Low wood buildings? That's what saved our house. Got good building standards?

This is when you find out what "bureaucratic" government is really doing for us._________________God writes a lot of comedy... the trouble is, he's stuck with so many bad actors who don't know how to play funny. -- Garrison Keillor

However, the local brothel in Wells ("DONNA'S Ranch" by name!) suffered some shaking.

I went to high school in Las Vegas, when my father was working for the Atomic energy Commission. I did get teased a lot about "Donna's". which for a shy girl was rather dismaying!

The Loma Prieta quake in the Bay Area in 1989 was a 6.9 (or 7.1 depending on who you listen to) - which made me absolutely certain that I never wanted to experience anything more than that! What turned out to be most disturbing for me were the aftershocks. I was nauseated and had a headache for weeks afterward, because there were literally THOUSANDS of aftershocks each week - very mild - magnitude 2 or 3. You couldn't really feel them, but they kept you just slightly off balance all the time! ( I am off balance enough without any extra help!)_________________L'appetit vient en mangeant. -Rabelais

At least now I can laugh about it - and think about the fact that THAT Donna probaly has a much better pension plan than I have as a mere teacher! _________________L'appetit vient en mangeant. -Rabelais

You folks are much braver than I to share your childhood nicknames! I had a few nicks over the years, but they shall remain secret except to those childhood friends who will know me forever.

And Donna, the OTHER Donna should be honored to have your name - maybe her associates have suggested that she could have followed a much different path! (but you're probably right about her pension plan. And methinks she can retire a little earlier!)

If you don't know the site, they sell one thing for 24 hours and then it's gone. ...unless it sells out before then.

Let me say that altho the readiness kit looks very useful in the electronic age, I have never ordered from the site before so I can give no personal endorsement of their reliability. I have, however, watched it for more than a year and I'm personally convinced I could risk $45 of my own money on it.

If you don't feel so confident, perhaps a similar kit is available at a brick and mortar store. The ability to recharge cell phones with a friction device strikes me as highly desirable, as do the manually rechargeable flashlight and radio._________________God writes a lot of comedy... the trouble is, he's stuck with so many bad actors who don't know how to play funny. -- Garrison Keillor

We got an Eton hand cranked radio for a public radio subscription. It also has the adapters for charging cell phone batteries - alas, not one for either of the phones we own!

I have a perennially PARTIAL earthquake kit put together - right now, it has no water, but everything else (unless you count the ten 20 oz. bottles of water leftover after a tennis tournament that I threw in). We won a raffle at the Berkeley Repertory theater after a performance of "After The Quake" by Haruki Murakami and received a small earthquake emergency kit including those 1000 calorie food bars (not the gourmet 1000 calorie food bars).

It seems moronic to me to be living virtually on top of the Hayward fault line and be Not Quite Prepared. And even more disturbing in view of the fact that Sam's sister died in a earthquake in Yugoslavia in 1963 - in an unreinforced masonry hotel. I try not to think about it..._________________L'appetit vient en mangeant. -Rabelais

Donna- I had NO idea! I think we owe soooo much to the people who have developed and enforce our building standards! I am always stunned at the destruction in other parts of the world from smaller and medium-sized earthquakes when we and Japan go, largely, unscathed — thank god! — from the 5.x variety.

When I moved from NYS to SoCal I was the tiniest bid obsessed about them. I bugged the school constantly about their plans and all the glass in the classrooms. All the CA native moms would look indulgently at me and tell me to get over it. When I put together our big kit (with the camp stove, the TP, the 20-year batteries, the construction gloves, a supply of everyone's meds and a week of clothes) I let it go and haven't worried since.

There's a lot of power in knowing you've done and provided what you can. I like your style, tho, of acquiring all these things in such an upscale, patroness of the arts sort of way! Ars longa, vita brevis. _________________God writes a lot of comedy... the trouble is, he's stuck with so many bad actors who don't know how to play funny. -- Garrison Keillor

Rainey, we've ordered from woot before with no problems. I go through phases where I check it early in the morning, then I forget about checking for a while. I've always enjoyed the little text descriptions that accompany each item.

OMG! toilet paper! I hadn't even THOUGHT of that! Will add immediately! And construction gloves!

We took emergency preparedness classes through the city (Citizens of Oakland Respond to Emergencies - CORE), along with others in our neighborhood association and learned a LOT. We can put out fires, do search and rescue (including cribbing to raise up collapsed buildings to rescue folks), first aid. We even had the fire department come out and run an emergency drill, where they gave us a disaster scenario and we had to figure out priorities and take care of things. (We got a pretty high rating on it!) We have a neighborhood stash of emergency supplies such as - a generator, filters for use with swimming pool water, walkie-talkies, bullhorns, first aid kits, fire extinguishers. The expectation is that we would be stranded for up to 72 hours. We have planned evacuation routes, but if there's a fire - all bets are off.

My fear is that something will happen while I'm 20 miles away (by freeway) at work. First of all, I'l be deputized and be required to stay until all the children are picked up - which with Ben grown and gone is not a problem. But getting back home will be nearly an impossibility, if it's on the Hayward fault. I'd probably have to walk home! I just pray for a Saturday earthquake!_________________L'appetit vient en mangeant. -Rabelais

I hear ya! When I was a pre-school teacher all the kids in my toddler class had at least one parent with them. Rule for the school and parenting class was part of the program. But the real deal for me — cause the kids were all living with us then — was that, in a major emergency, I was free to go to my own kids.

I made the mistake of mentioning that to a parent one day when she was talking about the profound nature of our need to protect them and I don't think she cared to hear that I would leave. Even when the kids were in their parents care. Oh well... I was used to the kids thinking that we (teachers) all lived at school. Didn't necessarily think the parents did too. But these were very A List, very privileged people.

msue- Glad to hear you've had good experiences. I always wonder about the people that but those big ticket things like TVs that sell out quickly. Who are they, I wonder, that will pop $400 or $500 on a website. But $20 I can stand to lose.

I always thought one of the $1 grab bags is what I'd finally buy first but I've never gotten to the site to find them still available. _________________God writes a lot of comedy... the trouble is, he's stuck with so many bad actors who don't know how to play funny. -- Garrison Keillor